Old Testament assertion of tree lore depicted in manuscripts as early as the 13th-century. The tree of knowledge or life was said to grow in the Garden of Eden.

Both trees are said to stood in the Garden of Eden. The forbidden fruit of the ‘Tree ofKnowledge’ is said to have brought the creation of man into being and that the ‘Tree of Life’ enabled man’s redemption, the latter providing shelter and shade for the former. According to Christian philosophy, the Tree of Life has also been called the ‘Tree of Adam’ and the ‘Tree of the Cross’. The tree is believed to have dense green foliage and to have provided Adam and Eve with shelter from God’s watchful eye. (Some believe it may have been a Fig or Banyan tree). Brought naked into the world the tree is thought to have provided the two with leaves for clothing.

According to one of the legends attached to the Tree of Knowledge, it is said by some that Eve concealed a branch of the tree when leaving the garden which she later planted. Some believe that this was not the case, and that the Archangel Gabriel in fact gave Eve three leaves on a small branch from the Tree of Knowledge and told her to plant it on Adam’s grave. This she did and the branch grew into a tree. The tree was later removed and replaced by an ornamental tree, planted by King Solomon. The tree was then submerged in the water of the pool of Bethesda. When the time came for Christ’s crucifixion it is said by some that this is the wood that was used to make the cross.